Lest We Forget
by Art4Life1
Summary: The nations have finally escaped the mansion, but are the horrors really gone? I suck at summaries. I promise the story is better. Rated T because i'm paranoid and I dont know what to rate this yet.
1. Chapter 1

He couldn't believe it, he thought as he stood outside the place he had been through hell in, it couldn't be real. As much as he wanted to believe it, the sun, the sky, the presence of all his friends, all alive, all breathing… he couldn't bring himself too.

There had been too many times, too many deaths, too many memories. It had to be a trick, a dream...

He felt a hand on his shoulder. Italy… no, Feliciano, turned his head. All of his friends were behind him, all with different things going on in their minds.

But he met their eyes and saw every single one of them was facing the same doubt he was. They were all trying to reassure each other that it was over.

To Feliciano, it seemed, there were two conflicting parts of his mind, one denying what he saw, that whispered, _again, you must go back again._ Then there was the other, the one he wanted so desperately to believe that told him, _it's real, everything is going to be fine now._

He was starting to believe the first voice, but then the Italian felt the key in his hand. It was as real as anything else, as solid as could be, and that's when it really hit him.

They were free.

Tears ran down his face, and for the first time since they had entered that horrid mansion, he laughed. He actually laughed. It was not forced or part of his act. It was genuine.

The other countries saw this and it seemed to make it sink in for them as well. There was a chorus of laughs and cheers. Many of them were hugging the others, hardly being able to control their happiness. Most of them were crying right along with him. It was amazing, all of them together. The feeling of freedom was overwhelming.

Feliciano felt two arms wrap around him. He opened his eyes and immediately knew it was Lovino. His brother laughed. That was something he hadn't heard in… who knows how long.

"We won fratellino." Feliciano nodded, knowing exactly what he meant and returned the rare hug. The two stayed like that for a while and when Lovino let go, he was, well… red as a tomato. But he was still smiling.

The other nations who had been fighting from outside the mansion joined them. The world was united together. He wanted it to stay like this.

Ludwig walked to Feliciano, his blue eyes glinting with tears. He smiled and said the one thing every one of them could wait no longer to hear.

"Let's go home."

They set off together, leaving the mansion behind.

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**Hi, this is the first fanfic i've posted. I'm thinking about continuing it. Tell me what you think, but please don't criticize me... too be gentle. Leave me the will to write more fanfictions. **


	2. Chapter 2

Feliciano hopped into the passenger side of the car, setting his pasta in the back seat of the red Ferrari.

"Hurry up fratello!"

"Chigi, I'm coming Feli!"

His brother shut the door, making sure to lock it before dashing to the car and jumping inside, not even bothering to open the door. He had a bag in his hand and Feliciano couldn't help but smile when he saw the familiar red fruit.

"Did you get good tomatoes?" the other looked at him with mock hurt for a moment, before he smirked and grabbed a tomato, handing it to him.

"See for yourself."

Feli took a bite and grinned. "This is great fratello!" Said person's smirk widened ever so slightly.

"You doubted me?"

The question went unanswered as Lovino turned the keys in the ignition. In less than a second his foot was on the gas pedal and the two were off.

They were headed to Japans house, just like they said they were going to after they got out of the mansion. All of the nations that had made human names were going to be there.

It had only been a few days since their escape but Feliciano had been looking forward to this day more than anything else. He wanted to see everyone again…

He found that a few hours after they had returned home yesterday that he started to think that not all of his friends would be at Kiku's house. That they had somehow died or the scene he would be met with when they arrived would be a bloody one. That a monster had somehow left from that horrible place and was going to take its revenge on them for escaping.

But his worst fear was that this would all be a dream and he would wake up at that place in the safe room or with Germany next to him saying the meeting was over and he would be forced to go _there_ again and they would all die and he would have to do it again and again and-

"Feliciano, listen to me!"

The Italian blinked and felt a hand on his shoulder. He glanced to his right and saw Lovino looking at him worriedly, one hand on the wheel.

Lovino saw that he finally had his brother's attention after trying several times in the past few minutes. He sighed.

"Breathe."

It was then Feliciano noticed he had been holding his breath. He released it slowly and breathed in. Repeat. His brother nodded, satisfied with the response and returned his eyes to the road, which they had surprisingly not driven off of.

"They'll all be there Feliciano, don't worry. It will be fine." He hoped that Feli would believe him. He did have plenty reason to be worried, no matter what is seemed like now that they were out of that hell hole.

Feliciano nodded, making a mental note to try and not climb on that train of thought again.

"I know fratello, it's just… I need to see them." Lovino completely understood that.

As they neared kiku's house Feliciano became both more exited and anxious. Lovino could tell his brother was trying to wait for them to arrive instead of just jumping out of the car and running as fast as he could to the Japanese man's home.

When they pulled in Feliciano was shocked to see everyone in the front, all smiling at them. They were welcoming the two.

Feli ran out of the car grinning and hugged Ludwig and kiku. Neither pushed him off though they did look flustered.

Lovino grabbed his tomatoes and his brother's pasta and walked to the group. For once he didn't curse at the German, only handing feli his pasta when he pulled away from his friends. Well, he supposed they were his own friends now too. That didn't seem so bad.

Someone hugged him from behind. Lovino didn't even have to look.

"Lovi, I'm so happy to see you!"

Lovino sighed although he smiled a little bit. Though he would never admit it, he was glad to see the Spaniard. He pulled himself from the one sided hug a red starting to color his cheeks.

"It's only been a day bastard." Antonio laughed.

"I know, but it seemed like forever. …oh, you look like a tomato Lovi~!"

Lovino's face became redder. Cue face palm.

Kiku decided that now would be a good time to intervene.

"Feliciano, Lovino, the two of you can put your food in the kitchen if you wish." Lovino nodded and walked inside. Feliciano smiled and turned his gaze to the others. "Come on!"

The other nations smiled and followed the now happy Italian into the household.

They did just what they agreed they would. They had a potluck of foods from each other's countries, and yes, even Arthur's. They laid out futons for everyone all over the house, though everyone wanted to sleep next to each other like they had that one night in the mansion. Before they went to bed kiku taught them how to play the sudden death pillow fight game.

Kiku and Alfred woke up early to pick food from his garden. Alfred woke the others up later and they went out as well.

Everyone went shopping a few hours after breakfast. Arthur, who now finally had his vision back, had a wonderful time looking at suits. Ivan got a yukata, which he enjoyed.

Everyone had a great time. They stayed at kiku's house for a few days until eventually they had to return to their own homes. Everyone was disappointed that they had to leave but at the same time wanted to be at their own home with their people; although, many nations, like Matthew, Arthur, and Alfred, were going to be staying together for a bit.

Feliciano didn't want to leave but Lovino and everyone else assured him that it would be alright.

It seemed like things were getting better, but all good things must come to an end.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia or Hetaoni.**

* * *

A few hours after they had gotten back from Kiku's house Feliciano started to grow distant again. He would stare off into space, or look at a specific object for too long. There were no incidents like in the car that morning but his zoning could last up to a few minutes if he wasn't spoken to or asked a question. Sometimes Lovino swore he could see ghosts of memory dancing across his eyes.

The brothers sat at the table, eating dinner. The only sound was their silverware against the glass plates. The silence wasn't uncomfortable or tense as it was unnerving.

Lovino glanced at his brother. Feli was picking at his pasta, zoning out for the millionth time that night. His amber eyes were glassy.

"Have you gotten any of your memories back Feliciano?"

His brother's head snapped up and he blinked a few times, as if trying to process the question. "…What?" He was silent for a moment before realization flashed in his eyes. "Oh."

A small smile appeared on his face. Even though he had only seen a real smile the day before this one still seemed so rare. "Yes, they are slowly returning to me fratello."

Lovino nodded. "Good. You don't need all of it being… that."

Feliciano nodded. "I'm glad. I thought they might not." his gaze returned to his food, the smile fading. His fork once again began its useless picking at the pasta. Usually he would have gobbled the thing right up, but usual would take time, and that was if it ever came back.

Lovino waited to see if Feli was going to say something else but nothing came.

They sat in relative silence for a bit longer. The older Italian actually tried not to let the pasta go to waste, but he didn't have much of an appetite tonight either. But tomatoes sounded good… Who was he kidding, tomatoes were always good.

The younger yawned and rubbed his eyes. He had had so many sleepless nights in that place. Lovino didn't know how it was possible to stay up that long.

Feliciano put his plate in the sink. "I'm going to bed fratello. Buona notte."

Lovino nodded, not removing his gaze from his brother. "Yeah, you better be. Buona notte fratellino."

When Feli shut the door to his room he sighed and set his fork down. He had a feeling it was going to be a long night.

* * *

Later that night Lovino awoke for no particular reason other than that he had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.

He sat up, waiting a moment for his eyes to adjust. Well, call it brotherly instinct or Feliciano being his other half but he knew his brother was having a nightmare.

Feliciano laid next him. He wasn't yelling or anything of the sort. Lovino guessed that he had to have learned to be quieter in the mansion. One loud noise, supposing the creature didn't know where you were, and bam. There went everything.

Feli's eyes were scrunched tightly together, as if trying to make the horror he was seeing to go away. His breathing was quick.

Lovino rubbed his eyes to try and make himself more alert. Feliciano whimpered and he shot up. Yeah that did it.

The older shook his fratello's shoulder to try and get him up. It didn't work. It just made Feli start trying to get away from him. Lovino wasn't sure what he was seeing but he knew that under any circumstances it wasn't rainbows and butterflies.

He grabbed both of his shoulders and shook them.

"Wake up Feliciano, wake up! You're having a nightmare."

Feli's eyes snapped open and he looked around. He was covered in a cold sweat and when he blinked and two tears ran down his face. He looked at the worried face of his brother.

"It was a nightmare?"

Before the other could even answer, Feli corrected himself. "No, memories…" He wiped the tears off his face and put his head back on the pillow.

Lovino sighed. His brother was still trying to be strong for them. "I know this is a stupido question, but do you want to talk about it?"

As he expected Feliciano shook his head. He had a distant look in his eyes that Lovino did not like.

Suddenly his brother sat up. "I'll be back in a moment fratello."

Lovino stared as he walked out the bedroom door. After a few moments he heard the distinct sound of something shattering.

He shot up, wondering what on earth Feli was doing. It sounded like glass, so that had to be-. "Shit."

After a second and heard another shatter, along with footsteps. Lovino knew that he should probably stop his brother, but he honestly just couldn't make himself do it. If it helped his him, what did it matter if the clocks were smashed?

Still, he needed to make sure his other half didn't hurt himself with all of the glass.

He ran downstairs, hearing more smashes on the way, to see at least six piles of broken glass and remainders of clocks. Mierda, how many clocks did they have in this house? He looked around and saw Feli hitting another clock with a rolling pin they used to make pasta.

Lovino walked over to him and was happy to see there were no cuts of any sort on his fratello. He did have shards stuck to his shirt, but that was beside the point. Now hopefully that was the last clock…

But, looking around, he thanked the universe with every fiber of his being that they didn't have a grandfather clock. Lord knows what would have happened.

Feliciano put the rolling pin on the ground and looked at his brother. The haunted look in his eyes faded somewhat. He huffed. "Okay Lovino, it's done."

His twin could only nod and pull his brother back into his, more like their, room while carefully avoiding any pieces of glass. He shut the door behind him, something both he and feli felt safer with, and locked it.

His twin nodded in approval and sat on the bed. Lovino lay next to him.

"Do you think you can go back to sleep?"

There was a nod in response. Lovino's eyes narrowed. Like I'm gonna buy that.

"Do you need some help?"

"Si."

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**AN: Hi everyone. I'm kind of unsure about this story, so please review. Criticism is welcome and I would really like to hear your thoughts on the story. It motivates me. **

**Translations:**

**Fratello- Brother(Italian)**

**Fratellino- Little brother(Italian)**

**Mierda- Shit(Spanish)**

**Si-(Italian)**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Thank you to anyone who reviewed. I appreciate it. *gives mochi***

**Well, here's the new chapter. I hope you enjoy it.**

* * *

_Pain. It hit me like a train, flowing through every inch of my body. Emptiness swelled in my heart, like half of it was missing. _

_My mind raced. What was going on? Why was I feeling this? _

_This feeling… it could only mean…. Veneziano was… No._

_I felt tears run down my cheeks as I tried to get my breathing under control. No. this couldn't be real. It couldn't be happening. my hand went to my heart as I searched, trying to find the half that had disappeared._

_Nations couldn't die._

_Something clicked and images raced through my mind. My eyes widened. _

_Japan lay dead in a pool of his own blood, head leaning against the leg of something white. A piano?_

_France, Russia, and china were laid against a wall. Bandages covered them, but they hadn't done much good. if it weren't for that they could have been asleep. What was going o-_

_America. He was sitting between England and… Canada. He was talking to someone. I could hear it. _

"…_I'll tell you in all honesty… I want to stay with them till my very last moment. Because they're both very important to me."_

_Vene's voice echoed in his ears. "And because you're going to… protect me-"_

"_Haha, yeah, even though I can't even move anymore. But I'm not making a mistake and I regret nothing. … Go for it. I wish you luck."_

_Germany and Prussia. They were leaning against a gray wall, in something that looked like a basement. Prussia was already gone. The vision was blurry. Veneziano must be crying._

"_Fine! I'll run! I'll run ten laps! I'll run as many laps as you want! But I'll run away! And then Germany…will have to run… to catch me…"_

_I gasped. My hand went to my heart. What… was going on?!_

Lovino's eyes snapped open. He stared at the ceiling, trying to control his breathing. Sighing he glanced to his left and saw Feli. Okay… just a dream. Everyone was okay. Feliciano was fine.

The blankets shifted. Damn it, he jinxed it.

He sat up and looked at his brother. Feliciano had started to move around, the complete opposite of yesterday. The noises he was making kind of made it sound like he was fighting something…well, no surprise there.

Lovino reached over to try and shake him awake, but before he could feli shot up gasping. His brother looked around frantically, trying to figure where he was.

He managed to calm him down but neither of them went back to sleep after that.

The next night Lovino saw that the circles under Feli's eyes, that had just started to disappear, were becoming darker. He knew his brother was tired but that he wasn't about to give up. Lovino finally convinced him after an hour and a half to get some rest. His twin only agreed because he said he would stay up until he went to sleep.

Though this, of course, couldn't prevent the inevitable.

Lovino only got about two hours of sleep before he hit the floor and was awakened. He groaned and looked around. What the fuck was that?

His mind caught up. Feliciano had kicked him off the bed. He sat up to see feli turning around in the bed, kicking like a madman. He was saying a mixture of things, but he was talking so fast even Lovino couldn't understand him. All he could tell was that it switched every few seconds.

he shook the others shoulder, trying to avoid getting hit again. Feli's eyes flashed open and he sat up, trying immediately to get out of bed.

Lovino sighed and tried to calm his brother. There had to be some way to stop these fucking things…

The nightmares kept growing worse. It took longer for him to wake Feliciano up and even longer to calm him down. His brother had hardly gotten any sleep in almost a week and neither had he.

Lovino was seriously contemplating calling the other countries and asking for help… but they were going through their own shit. All of them had problems to deal with right now.

But there was a meeting coming up the next day. Maybe he could find some help there.

Lovino sighed as the sun went down. He got up and went to the living room.

Feliciano sat on the couch, trying to keep himself from falling asleep. He didn't want to go to sleep. The nightmares were killing him. Every time he would see his friends die over and over and he wasn't sure how much more he could take of it.

Lovino grabbed Feli's hand dragged both himself and his half aware twin up the stairs to their room. He locked the door again as Feliciano flopped on the bed. He laid down next to him, trying not to fall asleep himself.

On some nights he would wake up from a nightmare or a part of it and feel a void inside him like he had when Feliciano had died. He had been able to calm himself down afterwards but the only reason it was accomplishable was because his fratello was right next to him.

Lovino decided to stop thinking about it. He made Feliciano lay down. A few moments later, despite trying not to, feli fell asleep.

_Feliciano laughed as tears ran down his face. They were finally free! After so long he could feel pure happiness flowing through him._

_He had almost given up hope of it ever happening. He almost thought he would just be stuck in the same cycle over and over again. His friends would die, he would have to back. In the time loops where he would die to save them, the others would go back in time and it would all start again._

_But they had done it. All together they had escaped. _

_Around him, his friends laughed and cheered. It was so nice seeing everyone happy. _

_Someone hugged him. He knew it was Lovino. _

"_We won fratellino." _

_Feliciano nodded. They had won. They had beaten that monster. His brother let go and sure enough he was as red as the tomatoes he picked with Antonio. _

_There was a hand on his shoulder and Feli's amber eyes met blue._

"_Let's go ho-"_

"_Feliciano, wake up."_

_The Italian opened his eyes and saw Ludwig in front of him. "Sorry to wake you, but were going to have a meeting about how to get your brother and Antonio back from the past."_

_Feliciano nodded and Ludwig walked off. His eyes met the white walls of the safe room and dread filled his stomach._

_It couldn't be… no, it… they couldn't be back here… it wasn't…_

_But his mind was already coming to terms with it while his heart felt like it was breaking once again. His hopes had been crushed, just like so many other times._

_It was all a dream…_

Lovino opened his eyes and looked around the room. Something seemed wrong.

He looked at Feliciano and saw that he wasn't thrashing for the first time in… whenever. He rubbed his eyes sleepily. How long had he been out? It didn't feel like that long and he felt more tired than he had before he went to sleep so, he guessed, it had only been about three of four hours.

Still, he was glad that Feli was finally…Wait a second…

His eyes widened as he looked again at his fratello. It was true he wasn't moving around, but he was dead still.

That's when it hit Lovino. Feliciano wasn't breathing. His mind flashed back to when he had felt, seen, his brother die.

Panic rolled in like a wave. "Wake up! Wake up Feliciano!"

The other didn't move, despite his efforts. Please don't be, please.

Lovino couldn't help it; he put two fingers on his neck and checked for a pulse.

Thank god. He had a pulse. He sighed and cursed himself. Don't think like that idiota. Stupido!

A thought occurred to him. The pulse was slow. He didn't know how long Feli had been holding his breath.

Lovino shook Feliciano harder.

"Wake up you idiot! You're having a fucking nightmare!"

There wasn't a response. Before he could process what he was doing Lovino head-butted his fratello on the forehead.

Feliciano's eyes opened. It wasn't quick like they normally opened after a nightmare. It was slow, almost defeated.

Lovino felt himself go cold at the look in those amber eyes. There was an almost unimaginable sadness within them and they looked tired, so tired. There was pain and fear in them. They were so well hidden but so obviously there at the same time. Lovino knew exactly what his brother was feeling.

He made Feliciano sit up. "Feli, breath."

There was a long intake of breath. Lovino sighed in relief.

"There you go."

But that one breath seemed to trigger a reaction. Feliciano's breaths became quicker and quicker. Tears filled his eyes and were about to overflow.

It seemed this dream had been more than just memories… or maybe not. Lovino wasn't entirely sure, but he needed to calm him down. He rubbed circles on his back and tried to calm his twins breathing down.

"Deep breaths Feliciano; Everything's okay, everyone's fine." he kept his eyes locked with his brothers. "You can do it feli, come on. Take a breath with me."

He took a deep breath and was glad to hear Feliciano trying his best to do the same. This continued until his breathing had gotten back to normal, or as close as it could get. A small smile graced Lovino's lips and he nodded.

"Good."

Feliciano looked around the room at the walls. He stared at them questioningly for a moment before Lovino saw a look come into his eyes that he hated more than the distant look; disbelief. He knew it well. After the first incident with his connection with feli that was all he had felt.

He put his hand on his brother's shoulder.

"Were home Feli. It's not a dream."

Feliciano didn't even turn his head. He just stared at the walls, a blank look settling over his features. When he spoke his voice was practically devoid of emotion.

"You're lying."

Lovino felt his blood turn to ice. He had been expecting this but Feli's voice… It was so hollow.

"I'm not Feliciano, I promise. We are home. Everyone's safe."

Feliciano turned his head to face his fratello. "Why are you lying to me?"

Lovino looked at his eyes again and didn't know what to do. How could he get someone who went through so much, who had gone back so many times, to believe this was real?

He had to try at the very least.

"Veneziano, I'm serious it's not a dream. How can I prove it to you?" Yeah, that was a good question.

Feliciano pondered this a moment before shaking his head.

He looked around the room again. "Where is my journal fratello? I have to study it again."

Well, it was clear that this wasn't going to work. He should have known.

Lovino looked at his cell phone. He needed help now…But who to call?

The Italian huffed and shook his head. He already knew what the answer to that question was.

* * *

**Translations: **

**Stupido- stupid(italian)**

**Idiota- idiot(italian)**


	5. Chapter 5

Ludwig knocked on the door to the Italy brothers' house. He really wasn't sure Lovino had called him over for, but it involved Feliciano and the older Italian had asked for help so it must have been worth the trip. Though a part of him vaguely wondered if the trip was just a dream… Vash had actually let him pass without shooting.

The door opened.

Ludwig's eyes widened when he saw what Lovino looked like. He had dark bags underneath his eyes, his hair was sticking out in various places and the man looked like he wanted nothing more than to pass out on the nearest couch.

Lovino frowned and raised an eyebrow. "What? Do I have something on my face?" his voice dripped with sarcasm.

Ludwig shook his head. this was definitely not a dream. "Nein, but… are you alright?"

Lovino paused a moment before sighing. "Just…" he couldn't think of anything to say and ran a hand through his hair in defeat. He wasn't in the mood for this. "Not really… get inside and follow me."

Ludwig did as instructed, although he was unsure about Lovino's behavior. They walked to Lovino's bedroom, although for the Italian it was more like trip. He was practically dead on his feet.

Lovino opened the door and allowed Ludwig to walk in. Feliciano, who was still sitting on the bed, looked up at the sound of the door. He looked just as bad as Lovino, maybe even worse.

"Oh, hello Ludwig. You're in the dream too."

Ludwig was surprised by the look in his friend's eyes as well as the tone in his voice. The blonde glanced at Lovino who nodded.

"A dream Feliciano?"

The brunette nodded. "Si. This is a dream."

Ludwig shook his head, understanding why Lovino had called him. "Nein, this is not a dream. We escaped."

Feliciano's head tilted slightly as he looked between the two. "Why does everyone keep lying to me? I'm dreaming."

Lovino sighed and sat next to his brother. "Feli, I've told you again and again, this is not a dream. And now Ludwig is telling you the same thing. Why won't you believe us?"

Ludwig looked at the older brother curiously, noticing he had called him by his actual name, but focused on the matter at hand.

"Wouldn't it be better if you believe us?"

Feliciano shook his head. "No, it wouldn't."

Both Lovino and Ludwig knew the problem lay behind this answer.

"Why?" both asked. Feliciano brought his knees to his chest and wrapped his arms around them, staring at the wall.

"Because, this is a its not and something happens to anyone, I cant go back. And I'm going to wake up back in the meeting hall, and Ludwig is going to tell me that the meeting is over… or I'm going to wake up back there, in the safe room or worse but…" his voice started to shake.

Lovino put a hand on his shoulder. Ludwig stepped closer to the bed. Both of them waited for feli to continue.

Feliciano looked at his knees. "…but… I… I c-can't do it… I can't." Tears started to fall down his face.

Ludwig wasn't quite sure he knew what his friend meant. "You can't what?" he regretted the words as soon as they left his mouth. Feliciano sniffed.

"I can't. If I wake up and I'm back there… it… It would…" He whimpered. Lovino understood what his brother was trying to say and hugged him for the second time that night.

"It would break your heart." He finished. Feliciano nodded.

Ludwig's eyes widened. Of course, how had he not seen that? …Dummkopf.

Feliciano continued brokenly, trying not to cry any more than he was. "And if this isn't a dream… than I won't be able to save anyone when they die… But I don't want to go back anymore… I… I don't want to go through it again. I don't… want to have to be strong anymore."

Ludwig put a hand on his shoulder. "You don't have to."

And that was when the damn broke.

Feliciano cried into his brother's shoulder. Lovino just rubbed circles on his back, telling him that it was okay to cry now that it was over.

Ludwig put a hand on his friends shoulder, feeling awkward. He honestly expected Lovino to tell him to leave, but the order never came.

After a while the younger Italians sobs turned to sniffles. Feliciano hadn't really cried himself out, but he did feel a bit better…

Lovino was silent a few minutes. Ludwig wasn't sure why until he heard Feliciano's breathing even out.

Lovino laid Feliciano onto the bed and sighed. Maybe both of them could finally get a good night sleep. He glanced at Ludwig, who was looking quite uncomfortable.

"Thanks potato head."

Ludwig blinked in surprise. Had he heard that correctly?

"Was?"

Lovino smirked. "You heard me." He rubbed his eyes tiredly. "Now, I would get back to your place. I'm sure Gilbert would freak out if he wakes and you're not there."

Ludwig nodded. "Ja, he would. I will see both of you at the meeting tomorrow."

Lovino was asleep before Ludwig reached the door.

Feliciano and Lovino slept through the morning and into the afternoon. Lovino was the first to wake up around three o'clock.

He yawned and his stomach growled. He supposed it was time for food…

He walked down the stairs and into the kitchen. What could he make? It was way past breakfast time. And Feli would like something… So pasta it was then.

Around the time the pasta was done Lovino heard soft footsteps behind him.

"Fratello… is that pasta?" Feliciano had obviously woken up when he had smelled his favorite meal.

Lovino nodded and smiled at his brother. "Si, it is." He put some of the alfredo onto a plate and handed it to Feli.

"Here you go."

Feliciano smiled and nodded, grabbing a fork and taking a bite of the pasta. He brightened immediately.

"Ve~ this is so good Lovino!"

The older chuckled. He was glad to see his brother starting to get back to normal. "Grazie Feliciano."

He filled a plate and started to eat himself. When both of them were finished the batch of pasta had disappeared.

Feliciano yawned. Now that he was full, his sleepless nights were starting to catch up with him, even if he had slept for most of the day.

Lovino noticed this of course. "Why don't you go take a siesta Feli? I'll wake you up when it's time to leave."

Feliciano nodded, not really in a state to argue. He walked back to their room and laid down.

Lovino was in the middle of eating a tomato when he heard his brother scream. And to be honest, he panicked.

"Stop! Stop, I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

He bolted up the stairs and into their room. Feliciano was entangled in the bed sheets, pleas and apologies coming from his mouth. Tears were running down his cheeks. Lovino cursed.

"Chigi!" He ran to his brother's side and shook his shoulders, though it wasn't as hard as the previous times.

"Wake up Feli, wake up…" a small part of him had thought this was the last time he would have to do this, though Lovino knew from what he had seen that this wasn't the case. Feliciano shook his head.

"No! mi dispiace, mi dispiace! Non sapevo che serrabe successo!"

Lovino shook him harder. "Feliciano, wake up! Idiota, svegliati!"

Feliciano lunged forward, panting heavily. Lovino almost fell off the bed head first trying not to get hit. He sat up and saw that Feliciano had his legs brought to his chest; head on his knees, and was starting to rock back and forth.

This was the worst Lovino had seen him. Even last night he hadn't been this bad.

Feliciano was mumbling brokenly in Italian. His hands were over his ears, apparently still hearing whatever he had heard in his nightmare.

The sight broke Lovino's heart. He couldn't stand to see his brother like this. He wrapped his arms around Feli's shoulders into a hug of sorts. Lovino wanted to comfort him in some way, even if he couldn't comfort worth crapolla.

"It's okay Feliciano, it's okay. It's not your fault."

The words sounded so stupid to him, but Feliciano stopped his mumbling for a second. He shook as he gripped Lovino's shirt. He held it like it was a lifeline, the only thing keeping him sane… which was probably true.

Feliciano started sobbing into his brother's shoulder. He was done.

"Mi dispiace… Mi dispiace" he kept repeating the apology over and over again. Lovino rubbed his back, as he had done the night before.

"Shh, it's not your fault Feliciano. It's not." Feliciano just continued apologizing as if he hadn't heard him. Lovino caught a few hints of sentences but he couldn't figure out anything from them. He pulled away slightly and tilted Feliciano's head up so he would look him in the eye.

"What happened Feliciano?" he asked it as gently as possible, thinking anything he said, asked, did, would make him freak out more.

Feliciano squeezed his amber eyes shut, tears continuing to fall from the closed lids. He shook his head and laid it on Lovino's shirt.

Lovino sighed. "Vene, please, can you tell me?" he used a nickname he had given his brother from a long time ago.

Feliciano tried to collect himself enough to form words. After a minute he lifted his head, his eyes full of hurt. "Th-they were y-yelling a-at me… they said t-that… that it was my f-fault and asked me w-why I l-let them d-die… and y-you said you wou-wouldn't be my b-brother anymore and I would have to t-take care of the c-country b-by myself. A-and you h-hated me. E-everyone was s-screaming and I… I couldn't d-do a-anything!" he broke down again.

Lovino stared. That was just awful.

His eyes narrowed for a split second before softening again. Why did his fratello have to be tormented by these damn nightmares? He had already been through enough.

Lovino sighed and tightened his grip on his brother. He opened his mouth to say something but closed it a moment later.

He could think of nothing. The situation was beyond words.

After what seemed like an eternity later Feliciano started to calm down. His shaking had almost slowed to a stop and his cries had come down to sniffles. Feli raised his head, his eyes red and puffy from all the crying.

"Fratello?"

Lovino met his gaze. "Hmm?"

Feliciano's grip tightened ever so slightly on his shirt. "Don't… don't leave me, okay?"

Lovino understood both meanings to his little brother's request; don't die and done leave me alone. He smiled in a way he hoped was reassuring. "I would never leave my fratellino alone." He meant that with all he had.

Feli paused a moment before nodding. He rested his head on his brother's shoulder, closing his eyes.

"Ti amo fratello."

Lovino had barely caught the sentence. He smiled softly to himself. "Ti amo Feliciano."

He waited until he heard his little brothers breathing even out and laid him back in his spot. Lovino looked at his watch, which had somehow survived the clock breaking escapade, and groaned.

Damn it, there was only two hours left until the meeting. Fuck…

Feliciano needed at least a good days sleep. Even if the meeting was going to be fairly short, he wouldn't last ten minutes without falling asleep.

Lovino could go without him… he shook the thought away as quick as it came. Not happening. Both of them could stay here?

The thought was tempting, but they both were needed at the meeting. Of course the one time that happens…

The Italian shook his head and walked downstairs. He needed another tomato.

An hour and forty five minutes later Lovino was standing beside his brother, contemplating what to do. He didn't want to wake him up, and even if he did it wouldn't do much good.

An idea popped into his head and he refrained from face palming. Why had he not thought of it?

Lovino picked his brother up carefully and carried him to the car. He put him in the back seat and smiled. Now he probably wouldn't wake up until they were outside the meeting building.

The older Italian locked the door and climbed into the driver's seat. He stuck in the keys and pressed on the gas. This was going to be a fun ride.

Fifteen minutes later Lovino pulled the car into the parking lot. to his surprise there were several parking spots in the front. He pulled in and took the keys out of the ignition. Now, it was time to get Feliciano up.

He poked his brother's shoulder a few times. "Feli wake up." nothing. He poked harder. "Fratello, wake up." still nothing. He shook his shoulder. "Wake up you idiot. Were at the meeting."

Feliciano's eyes fluttered open. he sat up slightly and tilted his head. "hmm?" he looked like he was going to pass out.

Lovino poked his shoulder again. "Were at the meeting." Feli's amber eyes widened, a spark of panic entering them.

Lovino quickly shook his head. "No Feli, were at the meeting to figure out what we're going to do about the hellhole."

Feliciano blinked and visibly relaxed. Thank god… "okay." he sat up more and yawned.

Lovino noticed he was starting to lean on the side of the car more and shook his shoulder. "Come on, let's go fratello. Wake up."

Feli nodded tiredly, stood up and shut the car door. Lovino followed and they walked to the meeting building.

When they found the room Lovino checked his watch. They were only three minutes late. The potato head shouldn't explode for that.

Feliciano opened the door and they entered. Everyone's eyes were on them and it made both of the brothers uncomfortable. Feli sat next to Ludwig, who looked glad that the Italian had made it to the meeting.

Antonio waved at Lovino, a huge grin of his face. Lovino fought the urge to face palm. Really Toni, really? He sat between the Spaniard and Feliciano. It was a good thing that Antonio had picked a seat close to Ludwig.

Lovino looked around the meeting room. For once all the nations had shown up on time and were actually waiting quietly for the meeting to start.

The Italian shook his head. "Maybe the world is coming to an end after all."

Ludwig stood up. Any conversations that were going on immediately stopped. The German nodded. "Thank you. Now, we are here to decide what we're going to do about that hellhole." Many of the nations exchanged glances and nodded in agreement.

Feliciano stood up. He barely held back a yawn, but when he looked at all the nation's determination flashed in his eyes. "All in favor of blowing it up?"

Everyone's hands rose. Feliciano smiled tiredly. They could finally finish this.

Ludwig crossed his arms over his chest. "Does anyone have explosives we could use?"

Hands shot up before everything went black. Screams filled the air.

* * *

**AN: Cliffhanger! So, this was originally supposed to be two chapters but I decided to put them together. Sorry for the wait! It took longer than I expected... **

**After this chapter I'm thinking of showing how the other countries spent their first week at home. If you have any ideas of how they would act or be affected, I would like to hear them. **

**Translations:**

**Mi dispiace(italian): I'm sorry**

**Fratellino(italian): Little brother**

**Non sapevo che serabe successo(italian): I didn't know this would happen (I apologize if I got the translation wrong. I blame google if it is.)**

**Svegliati(italian): Wake up**

**Thanks for reading!**


	6. Alfred

**AN: Hi everyone, here's the new chapter. Sorry it took so long.**

* * *

Alfred plopped on the couch, breathing in the familiar scent around him. Ah, it was good to be home. He looked around his living room. Everything seemed untouched. Nothing had been moved or was out of place from what he remembered it looking like. There wasn't even that much dust on anything. A part of him wanted it to seem odd, but it was nothing of the sort.

It seemed like it had been an eternity since he had last stepped into the place, but in reality it had only been a few months. As Feliciano had explained it, he had gone back again and again, along with those few times Arthur had…

He paused and shook his head, trying to push the unwanted memory away. Stop it, he scolded himself. He didn't want to remember _that._ The American sighed as he forced his mind to return to its original train of thought.

With time turning back, it had reset everything up until the meeting; like their time in the mansion had never happened. Time said they had only been through it once.

Mentally… that was a different story entirely. Even though they had only received partial memories from the time loops it felt like… too much. Too many nations, friends, family, lost. Too many times. And he knew that he was only scratching the surface. Just how many loops had they gone through? For all he knew, they really could have been stuck for an eternity before now…

The only one that had any idea was Feliciano. He had written it in that journal of his… but even then that didn't count the times the Italian himself had died. No one knew how many times that was, except maybe Lovino and Arthur… No, Arthur wouldn't know.

But wait… What would have happened if both of them had died in a time loop? Wouldn't there have to be someone to turn back the time? How had that not….

"Urgh." Alfred rubbed his temples. This was giving him a headache.

There wasn't anyone else that knew how to do magic so both of them couldn't have died in a loop. It couldn't have happened. But then Arthur had sent back Lovino and Antonio back in time to rid that loop of the monsters. Could a past Arthur have done it if both of them were gone? Antonio and Lovino had just come to the mansion once. But if they sent back others…

He groaned. Why was he even thinking about this? It was too confusing. The matter of time was confusing in itself.

The door clicked and he nearly jumped out of his skin.

"Sorry Alfred. I didn't mean to startle you."

Matthew. Oh… Alfred turned to see his brother walking into the house followed by Arthur. He was glad to see that the Englishman was alert and his eyes no longer vacant. He had gotten his sight back not long ago… Had it been only a few days ago?

The American shook his head. All his musing about time had muddled his head.

Arthur looked at him quizzically. "You alright there?"

Alfred nodded even though they all knew that no one in the room was anywhere close to being okay. "Yeah, just thinking."

Both of them nodded in understanding. Alfred looked to see they had their traveling bags. He smiled when he saw Matthews.

"Nice bag Matt."

The Canadian blinked and looked down before smiling. His bag had the same design as his flag. "Thanks. I needed to bring some home with me."

Arthur smiled slightly and nodded. "Same here." He turned his bag around to show a union jack. Alfred's smile widened.

"Cool Artie."

Arthur raised an eyebrow. "You have a nickname for that now too?" He sounded more amused than annoyed.

Alfred shrugged and followed them up the stairs. It was nice to have them here. Both of them were very important to him after all…

He paused, stopping just before the top of the stairs. Those words sounded… familiar. Had he said them before? As he thought about it something tingled in the back of his brain. What was he not remembering?

"Alfred."

The blonde's head shot up and he met his twin's eyes. "What?"

Matthew's eyebrows furrowed in worry. "You okay?"

Alfred nodded, a small smile forming on his face. "Yeah, I'm fine. But for a second there… Never mind."

His brother seemed to be analyzing him before thankfully; he decided not to question him further. He turned around. "Come on, you need to help me unpack. I brought loads of maple."

The American smiled. "Sure."

The twins walked down the stairs and opened the fridge. Alfred pulled out a gallon of milk.

"Yeah, this is way past expired…" He glanced from the milk to the other items. "We need to go grocery shopping tomorrow."

Matthew nodded and placed his maple in the empty spot. Alfred followed.

"Now that that's done… let's see what we can actually eat out of this."

They began looking at the food, one thing at a time. It was time consuming, but they needed a distraction. Unsurprisingly, most of the food had gone bad though they were able to find a few salvageable items.

Matthew pulled out a sandwich and his eyes narrowed. "That is definitely bad."

Alfred reached over and took the item, looking it over. He sniffed it and immediately after put a hand over his nose. "Oh yeah, that's awful bro." he walked to the trashcan before taking a step back. "Holy- look at this matt! I think this stuff is radioactive."

The Canadian chuckled.

"Hey if I eat it, do you think I'll get superpowers?"

There was a brief moment of silence before both brothers burst out laughing. When they finally were able to breathe again, Matthew wiped his eyes. It was a stupid joke, but for a second it was like how it used to be.

"That was good Alfred."

The American threw the sandwich in and smiled. "Thank you very much."

He grabbed the next item and started looking for the expiration date before everything went black. Everything was silent aside from the powering down of machines indicating a power outage.

Both brothers blood ran cold. Alfred looked around. "Matt?" he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm here Al."

Alfred nodded, before realizing that his twin couldn't see him. He heard rustling coming from upstairs and his eyes widened. "Shit! Arthur."

They ran to the stairs and tripped up them trying to reach the room the Englishman was in. Arthur's ragged breathing could be heard from the hall. The brothers felt along the walls and heard Arthur's voice close to them.

"Turn on damn it, turn on!"

Alfred could hear the light switch flipping up and down. "Arthur, were here bro!"

If the Englishman heard them he showed no sign. He was panicking.

Alfred walked towards where he thought the light switch would be. "Arthur, the lights should come back o-"

There was a ringing noise as light filled the room. Alfred sighed in relief. Thank god it was back.

Arthur was leaning against the wall, trying to get his breathing under control. Alfred had to repress a shudder when he saw the haunted look in his eyes.

Matthew walked over to him. "Arthur are you-"

He nodded. "Yes… I will be fine in a few moments."

Alfred and Matthew exchanged a glance. Okay…

Not too long after the blackout everyone decided to go to bed, with the lights on of course. They silently agreed earlier to sleep in the same room. Arthur brought in a spare mattress to sleep on from another room and the twins shared a bed.

Sleep was not the easiest thing to find. At the slightest noise one of them would jump, or they would be instantly wide awake. Once when Alfred was actually close to falling asleep, he opened his eyes and thought he saw the alien in the shadows.

Eventually though, he grew tired enough to finally give in to sleep.

_I turned my head from side to side, looking at my brothers. Canada's blanket was mostly red. The bottom portion was more so than the top. Under the blanket he had bandages wrapped around multiple wounds. They probably needed changing… _

_I slowly moved my gaze to my twins face. It was deathly pale and his eyes were closed. I knew they would never open again._

_Now I turned my gaze to England. His blankets were red as well. He had bandages everywhere. Many covered his chest and torso. His eyes were even covered with a bloody bandage._

_Their hands were so cold…_

_Part of me just kept wishing. Come on, open your eyes. Move. Anything._

_The doorknob turned. I jumped and was immediately alert. In less than a second it seemed, I had my gun pointed at the door._

_Italy walked in and shut the door behind him, raising his hands in peace. I slowly lowered my gun. What was he doing here?_

_When he saw my brothers, his eyes widened. He took a deep breath. "I think Germany and Prussia are somewhere in the basement. …we can go find them…"_

_I smiled sadly. We both knew that I wasn't getting out of this place. _

_One look at me and I could tell he knew there was no making me. He had tears in his eyes. "Are you sure?"_

_I nodded and smiled through the pain. "Yeah, we'll be fine, so just get out of here and bring us reinforcements or something."_

"_Wait!" Oh Italy… you just had to keep trying. "In the meantime, even you will get hurt beyond help-"_

_I shook my head. "It's fine. Besides, I want to do these two a favor and stay with them." Liar._

"_America…"_

_I'm not sure why, but I laughed. "Ha… No, that isn't it. They can't hear me anymore, so I'll tell you in all honesty…" I took a deep breath. "I want to stay with them. Till my last moment because they're both very important to me."_

_Italy looked at the ground. "And because you're going to… protect me-"_

_I laughed again. "Haha! Yeah. Even though I can't even move anymore. But I'm not making a mistake." I looked between them again. "And I regret nothing."_

_There was silence. I smiled at him. "Go for it. I wish you luck." _

_He nodded slowly. "You to America." He reluctantly walked out and shut the door._

_I sat there for a while. I'm not sure when I started dozing off, but a loud bump woke me up. I opened my eyes and looked around. What was-holy shit!_

_An alien was in the room! How had it gotten in?!_

_Adrenaline rushed through my body as I stood up. The creature hissed at me and lunged. I pulled out my gun and started firing. The bullets hit their mark, but like the other times it did little to no damage. It stalked towards me. _

_I pressed the trigger, but nothing happened. My eyes widened and I started hitting the side. No, this was not the time for this! No!_

_The creature slammed into me and I toppled backwards over the chair. I looked straight at it and I knew that this was it. _

_A pain erupted in my skull and I squeezed my eyes shut. Something cracked and I screamed._

Alfred's eyes shot open and he bolted forward. A scream still ripped through his throat. He could feel his skull being broken.

"Alfred!"

Suddenly Matthew was in front of him. Wait, wasn't he dead? And where was the monster? Was he dead?

He felt a hand on his shoulder. "Alfred, lad, it's alright."

What was going on?!

Matthew looked him in the eye. "Alfred, you just saw a memory. It's okay, were home."

His scream finally died away. He gripped his head, and felt something running down his cheeks. Tears. Great.

Arthur sighed. "Come here." He wrapped his arms around the Americans shoulders. Matthew rubbed his back.

Alfred returned the embrace, glad that both of them were there. He winced, feeling a pulse of the phantom pain in his skull and gripped Arthur's shirt. "It hurts."

The Englishman nodded. "I know."

"Alfred…" Matthew paused, like he had to physically push the question out of his mouth. "What did you see?"

The American hid his head in Arthur's shoulder. "… The… The first loop." He knew that had been the first time. That was the beginning to it all.

He felt Matthew shudder. He knew, Alfred realized, somehow he knew what had happened to him. But… How he knew was a question for later.

For now, they could just be glad everyone was safe.

* * *

**AN: I'm not sure about ending it there, but I will do more parts with these three. **

**I'm not sure how fast I will have the next chapter out. School is starting back up, so it might be a bit longer. Thanks for reading!**


	7. Matthew

**AN: Here's the new chapter! **

* * *

Matthew's eyes glazed over as he stared out into the rain. It reminded him of that one night in the mansion when everyone slept on the floor. But then again… Everything reminded him of that place. At least it was one of the better days, if there were any.

The blonde sighed, feeling his jacket begin to get soaked. He didn't care, but Arthur would have a fit if he came in dripping. The thought made him smile and he kicked a rock in thought.

"Yo matt! Come back inside!"

The smile disappeared and the Canadian turned around, spotting Alfred just inside the house. "Tell Arthur five more minutes!"

His brother paused and turned, looking inside. His mouth moved and after a moment he turned around, nodding and giving him the okay.

Matthew turned away as the door shut. He huffed and watched the transparent mist disappear. He had been avoiding his twin ever since the younger's nightmare. He wasn't sure why exactly, other than the fact that his brother knew what he had witnessed and would probably try to talk to him about it. Matthew didn't want to talk about it, remember it, or think about it. That moment was something he wanted to bury… Even though he could still hear Alfred's screams echoing in his ears.

The Canadian turned his attention to a nearby tree, watching a bird landing to feed her babies, who were cheering with glee. He shook his head in frustration. Maybe the screams wouldn't go away…

"Matthew, come inside. Time is up, you stubborn twat."

Matt chuckled at his former guardian's words and finally did what the elder wanted. When he was inside, the Brit shut the door, not forgetting to lock it, and looked him over. His eyebrows knitted as his eyes narrowed disapprovingly.

"Change your clothes before you get a bloody cold. I'll make hot chocolate."

"Me too Artie!"

Arthur huffed, though you could tell he was amused. "Alright! Just be patient git!"

Matthew walked up the stairs and turned his head. "With maple?"

The Englishman nodded. "Yes, of course."

The Canadian proceeded into the guest room and changed his shirt and pants. He checked his phone and saw that there were several new messages. Most were from Gilbert, though there were some from other countries and Germany (that one was about the upcoming meeting). He opened the ones from Gil.

'Hey, how ya doing? The awesome me wants to talk to you.' Matthew smiled and scrolled down. 'Birdie, you there? Wait… Shit you might be sleeping. Fu-'He laughed. Oh Gilbert…

The next message was from only fifteen minutes before. 'Matt there's a friggin Steve here holy shit! Answer your damn phone!'

This made him stop, panic and worry coursing through him. Could it have found them? He checked and saw he had one missed call from the Prussian. Only one? His mind thinking of worst case scenarios, Matthew dialed the Prussian. Just as the first ring went off, his phone vibrated. He pulled the phone away from his ear and started reading.

'Just a shadow… Sorry birdie, I didn't mean to freak you out. Don't go all emergency on everyone, I'm fine. Just kinda… Thought I saw shit. Heh sleep might help. But really, I'm okay.'

Matthew started typing. 'Hey Gil. I'm okay, but you nearly gave me a heart attack. Please, try not to do that again… Get some sleep, okay?'

Sighing, he set his phone on the dresser before thinking twice and slipping it into his picket. Just in case… He walked down the stairs and into the kitchen.

"Hey Matt." Alfred greeted, taking a large gulp of his hot chocolate. Apparently, that was the wrong choice. His eyes grew to the size of golf balls and he frantically grabbed a napkin, spitting out the drink. "Ow, 'ot, 'ot! Ow! My 'ongue!"

Arthur gave his head a slap. "Idiot, I told you to be patient!" Shaking his head, he sat another cup of hot chocolate onto the table.

Matthew sat down, grabbing the red cup and savoring the warmth it gave off. Unlike Alfred, he blew on it before drinking and when he did, thanked Arthur for adding the right amount of maple; not too much, not too little. The Brit nodded, smiling slightly.

There was a slight screech of a chair, making Matthew jump and another scream ring, as Alfred returned to the table. If he noticed, he didn't say anything, merely taking a gulp of water. "That's better…"

There was silence for a few moments. The Canadian glanced between his two fellow nations. They had been better since the blackout incident. Alfred still had nightmares, and awful ones at that, but he was better during the day. Arthur was mostly alright, as long as the lights didn't go off. His nightmares were manageable… for the most part.

"How do you think everyone else is doing?" Alfred questioned, not able to take the silence. Arthur sighed.

"Not well I imagine. I talked to Francis earlier. He says he's alright but it's all rubbish."

The brothers look told him to explain further.

"If you sit next to him or a sudden sound goes off he yells 'Mon dieu!' and looks like his heart is going to give out."

Matthew blinked, looking at the wood patters on the table in thought. He didn't like the sound of that…

"Poor france…" Alfred muttered.

"He'll get better eventually." Arthur assured, though he didn't sound so sure. You could hear the silent 'I hope' in his sentence.

Alfred chose that moment to yawn, followed shortly by Matthew. Neither of them had gotten much sleep over the past couple of days.

Arthur huffed softly. "Why don't you two take a nap? Or whatever it is Antonio takes… Siestas."

Alfred's eyes widened. "Um… No thanks artie, I'm good." He stood up and tried to make a break for it, but Matthew intercepted his 'jailbreak'.

"It's okay Al, I'll know if you're having a nightmare."

The American stared at him a moment before sighing. "Alright…"

Matthew walked up the stairs with his brother following. Alfred took the bed and matt took the couch. He didn't mind. In fact, he would rather not be in the same bed. It was preferable, nightmares and all…

The Canadian waited until he saw and heard the telltale signs his brother was asleep before turning on his side. Let's hope the nightmares would be kept at bay for a few hours…

* * *

I opened my eyes and glanced around, unable to see. Everything was pitch black. You couldn't see three inches in front of your face.

"Hello?" I called, starting to get worried. A familiar pit grew in my stomach as I tried to get a better look around. Why was it so dark? Why couldn't I see? Where was everyone?

I stood up and started trying to feel my way around. The only thing was… there was nothing to grab. It was like a giant pitch black abyss that you couldn't stop falling into. It was suffocating me.

And then the screaming started. It was one voice at first; loud and clear. Horrible. Terrifying. Sad. I turned my head in its direction. "Hello?!" Who was screaming?

The screaming grew louder and more seemed to add on. My ears were ringing as I tried to find their source. Memories flooded my mind from time loops better left forgotten, things I never wanted to see or hear again as long as I lived and beyond, and I covered my ears. If there were a ground, I was sure it would be shaking.

The screams rose in pitch and I fell to the ground (Was it ground? No, surface.) , drawing in on myself. A new scream added and I recognized it as Feliciano. It was from one time loop where he just couldn't take it anymore after so many of us died and started screaming. It was so heartbroken and tired, kind of like how I felt right now.

My eyes widened as I felt something drip through my fingers, a few slick drops running down my face and glasses. Blood.

I removed my hands from my ears to see that they were covered in the crimson liquid. The screams intensified and a groan escaped my lips. I put my head against the floor, thinking maybe they would lessen. No such luck. They continued to grow and when I opened my eyes, I swore I could see more blood in the distance.

When would they stop?!

* * *

Matthew's eyes shot open. The screams still rang in his ears, but he was no longer in the black room. He was still on the couch, though he now had a blanket. The Canadian sat up and removed his hands from his ears. Contrary to what he thought he would see, there was no blood; Tears were the only thing that stained him.

He glanced around the room. Alfred was no longer in the bed, or in the room for that matter. The covers had been thrown to the sides sloppily and the pillows were out of place. He pushed down the left over worry and took a deep breath, walking silently down the stairs.

Arthur was nowhere to be seen. He was probably upstairs trying to read. Looking into the kitchen, Matthew saw Alfred sitting in the furthest chair, silent.

As if sensing his presence, his twin turned, smiling slightly. "Hey Matt." He paused, eyebrows furrowing. "It looks like you had a fight with sleep and it kicked your ass. You okay?"

Matt opened his mouth to speak. "Ye-" a scream cut him off. He winced, trying to shake it off. "…I'm fine."

Alfred said nothing, staring at the kitchen table. Matthew sat in front of him and he whispered, "Really?" He looked his brother in the eye, his blue ones shining in concern. "Because I don't think covering your ears in your sleep and begging it to stop is what someone calls okay."

Matthew blinked. "You… you saw that?"

"Yeah, and I came down here because I knew you'd do the same when you got up." He averted his eyes. "And I kinda woke up from a thing of my own… Again."

The Canadian nodded. "I guessed that much…" He sighed. "And Al, no one is okay. What did you expect?" He received a shrug.

"Something not good. But… I wanna help and… as the hero, I have to ask how I can."

"…" Matthew stared at the table and jumped when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Matt I want to help. What did you want to stop?"

He sighed, whispering tiredly. "…What I still want to stop Alfred."

His brother's eyes narrowed. "You hear it when you're awake?" the older nodded. "What is it?"

"…the… screams Al. Screams…"

Alfred's eyes widened. He slowly pointed towards himself. "…are they…?"

Matthew nodded. "Mostly…"

Alfred sighed. "Oh matt…" Getting up, he walked to the other side of the table and embraced his brother, hoping it would help. "They're just echoes. They aren't real."

The older twin felt tears sting his eyes. "But they were real Alfred. They happened. You… Everyone…" Died.

He felt Alfred nod. "I know… Believe me, I know…" He trailed off, probably thinking of his own nightmare. "But this is different. We're out."

The screams died away ever so much. "Okay. Yeah… You're right." He pulled back and poked his brother. "Can I help _you_?"

Alfred blinked, almost looking like a deer in headlights, before turning his gaze to the wooden floor. "It was all of them this time. Well… All but Feli."

Matthew nodded. Alfred usually dreamt of a certain loop each night; Different deaths each time, but all still painful. There was no particular order either. "But you went back?" He nodded. "Okay… Well, listen to your own advice. It's right. This time is different. We won."

Alfred met his eyes and a smile slowly started growing on his face. It looked like he was shaking off the memories for now. "How about we roast that mansion?"

Matthew nodded in agreement, smiling when he thought of that damned place going up in flames with all the Steve's in it. "I wouldn't have it any other way." His brother picked that moment to yawn. "Okay, let's try and get some good sleep. The meeting is…" He paused, thinking back to the texts. "What, two days from now?"

Alfred nodded slowly. A wary look entered his eyes at the thought of sleep, but he agreed softly. "Okay…"

They quietly walked up the stairs and Matthew spotted Arthur sleeping in his good chair, a book in his lap. He and Alfred smiled, one grabbing a blanket and the other draping it over their former guardian. They had to be careful because Arthur was an extremely light sleeper now.

They walked to the guest room and Alfred got in bed, leaving a spot for his brother. Matthew lay down and looked between the two, thought of all the damage that place and those things had caused. Gil was seeing things, Francis nearly had a heart attack at the smallest of things, Alfred had horrible nightmares, and Arthur now had panic attacks when the lights went out... He hadn't heard from the others yet, but god knew about Feliciano.

He hoped things would get better. Of course, as the saying went, it will get worse before it gets better… But… It had to get better, for all of their sakes.

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**AN: The next chapter will be up sooner. Review please!**


	8. Arthur

**AN: Here's the new chapter! It's our favorite Brit's turn now. I think I might do Francis next... But the chapters will be coming out sooner now that i'm almost out for the summer. Also, I didn't really know what gender Flying Mint Bunny was so... I made it a girl.**

**Enjoy the feels. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia.**

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Arthur sighed, leaning back in his favorite leather chair. It was, relatively, a nice day. The sun was shining through the windows, a bit too bright if you asked him, and the birds had started chirping. His emerald eyes shut, not sure if he liked the silence in the house or hated it. It didn't seem right, now. It rang in his ears and reminded him.

The shadows seemed to shift around the Brit, forming distorted faces and friends, of times he would rather forget. They whispered in the silence and for a moment he wasn't sure if it was in his mind or not.

He shook his head, slowly opening his eyes. He saw nothing, no one at all. There was no one there. There couldn't be…

Footsteps patted against the stairs, making him jump ever so slightly. Matthew walked into view, alfred striding behind him. Oh, right. The boys had been upstairs still.

"Good morning Arthur." Matthew greeted softly, pausing to grab an apple from the basket on the table.

Alfred smiled and gave him a small wave. "Hey."

Arthur looked the brothers over, taking in the details. They looked like they had finally gotten a descent night sleep. That was good, it was progress… ish. He still saw the flinch as Matthew heard the toaster pop, the look in Alfred's eyes when he met his own. It made him start to wonder how much good these memories were, if they were doing any at all.

A plate shoved in his direction stopped his train of thought. Looking down, he saw a plate of two pieces of toast and jam on the side. He took it slowly and gazed at Alfred questioningly.

"Eat." Matthew said. It was a request, but the way Alfred nodded made it seem more like an order.

Biting back a sigh, Arthur started eating. It wasn't bad, but, to be honest, he wasn't very hungry. He didn't want to-

A sound came from behind him; a disgusting, vile sound. It made his stomach drop and churn, his hands unconsciously setting the toast back onto the plate. He struggled to swallow the piece in his mouth and dared not look behind him. He had made that mistake once and, no, he was NOT hungry anymore.

His former colonies gazes had switched, morphing to ones of concern.

"You okay Artie?"

He nodded in Alfred's direction, avoiding his eyes. There was the winner for stupidest question of the day, and it wasn't even noon yet. He stood, trying to keep his hand from clutching his stomach. "I'll be back in a moment."

He didn't wait for their responses as he walked as calmly as he could to the bathroom and shut the door. Taking deep breaths, he reminded himself that it wasn't real, the noises, the voices, the visions. It was just an aftereffect, a backlash.

But, another part of his mind countered, it was real. What he saw had happened at some point, in some time loop.

This only made Arthur feel worse. He sat against the counter, running a hand through his blonde locks, thinking. There had to be some spell to stop the effects, some type of… something. He barely ate, rarely slept, and now it was just a struggle not to vomit.

His spell books… there had to be something in his spell books. Yes… That's what he could do.

His stomach lurched when he felt something drip on his arm. He looked down and then slammed his eyes shut. No, no, it wasn't real. That wasn't blood. Don't do this now Arthur… Just breathe its fine.

There was a knock on the door.

"Is everything okay Arthur?"

Matthews's voice was quiet, but the tone clear. If he didn't get out soon, there would have to be some explaining. He really didn't like worrying his boys but he didn't want to get up just yet.

There was shuffling next to him. Arthur kept his eyes closed, expecting the worst.

"England?"

The voice was soft and a bit high pitched. There was a tiny flap of wings following it. His body relaxed and he opened his eyes. After a moment, Flying Mint Bunny came into view. She looked the same as ever, even though they had been gone for so long. Though now, her smile was replaced by a worried frown.

"Hello Bunny."

She smiled and nuzzled his head. "You need to get up. You can't stay in here all day."

He wanted to argue that, yes, he could, but it didn't seem wise. A fairy perched on his shoulder and he sighed. "Alright, alright. I'm coming."

He stood, wobbling (only slightly), and turned to doorknob. It clicked and he realized that he had locked it again. Seconds later, he was out the door, covering all evidence of his momentary panic. Matthew was waiting outside the door for him, concern shining in his purple eyes.

Arthur gave him a small smile. "I'm alright Matthew."

"…Are you sure?"

He nodded. He was fine until he figured this out… kind of. "Yes."

The Canadian looked back towards the kitchen, where he assumed Alfred was, before looking back at him. With one more nod from Arthur, he reluctantly walked back to his brother.

He breathed a sigh of relief, following Flying Mint Bunny to his base… oh. He stopped short, staring at the door. It was dark down there and… He saw and heard more things in the dark. It was embarrassing really and the blackout incident didn't help… but… He really didn't want to go down there.

The fairy smiled at him. "It's alright, we will light the room for you."

Arthur took a deep breath, giving her a grateful smile. "Thank you."

Not long afterwards was he down the stairs and into his basement. A familiar pentagram lay on the ground as well as the nice crackle in the air. Layers of books sat stacked against the walls, lying up against several of the book cases. All were of spells, supernatural creatures, potions, or things relating to that nature. Fairies were in the room, many flying, but some sitting and standing. The room was alight with their glow.

Feeling better, he nodded, sitting at a desk near the east wall. He grabbed several spell books and started looking.

* * *

Arthur groaned, putting another stack on the ground. This was getting him nowhere.

He had lost all track of time and was now just flipping to random pages when he grabbed a book. There had to be at least one spell to help him in here…

He kept glancing over his shoulder. Despite the Fae and their lights, it still felt rather dark and even if the room had no shadows, he would still be paranoid. A voice caught his hearing, whispering "You're doomed."

None of his friends moved, seemingly unable to hear this voice. He wasn't sure if this made him feel better or worse, but he tried to shake it off. He would figure this out if it killed him… "Alright, next one..."

The first words he read on the cover nearly caused him to chunk the book clear across the room. 'Time Travel'.

As he reached back to throw, a Fae grabbed his hand, making him pause. "It's alright Arthur. This book will not cause you to go back. It's safe."

Shuddering, he nodded. "R-right. Sorry…"

She merely smiled and nodded in understanding while he half opened the cover as a test. It did nothing. He sighed, flipping to a random page just past halfway in.

'Time Traveler's Sickness'

Well… This was interesting. Arthur started reading.

'Time travel is a difficult thing. It provides insight, knowledge, opportunities and chances. It can give revenge, justice or cause disaster. When one time travels, if they do go back to many times or don't take the right precautions, it can lead to time traveler's sickness, otherwise known as time sickness. It does not happen often, but once infected it can lead to a number sign effects.

Symptoms include: Dizziness, time seeming to speed up or slow down around you, seeing, hearing or feeling things from past time lines or loops, rapid weight loss, feeling as though you are in the time period you visited, and reoccurring nightmares and visions.

We have seen these symptoms in victims and patients who have time traveled too much or were unwillingly taken through time and space. There are mild cases (Where the symptoms eventually fade) or severe (in which case, the effects do not disappear or can stay long after the person's lifetime).

There have been many different spells, potions, and elixirs tried to shorten the effects and/or get rid of them. Thus far, there is no known cure for many of the symptoms. The lighter ones can be dealt with, but as the others go on, it is more difficult. They seem more attached to the events and the person's being than anything else we have observed.

Note: We have tried a new experiment today. A young woman with extremely bad time sickness had come to my attention and I tried something different. We removed her memories of the events and shortly after, there were no symptoms. She was free of everything.

We now know that the best way thus far to be cured of time sickness is to use a memory wiping spell on the specific memories of the time travel and what occurred during and thereafter.'

Arthur stared, feeling as if he couldn't move. He couldn't process this information.

They had to… Forget? Again?

The thought had crossed his mind that maybe he would have to erase some of the memories, but every time, he had decided against it. He had already forgotten what happened numerous times when Feliciano went back and he hadn't wanted to lose any bit of what they had gained from the experience.

But… There was an actual sickness. It was affecting him at the very least and he had only gone back a handful of times. What about…

Quickly pulling out his phone, Arthur clicked speed dial. It rang for a total of thirty seconds before there was a click.

"Hello?"

It was Lovino. He had hoped it was Feliciano, but…

"This is Arthur. Is Feliciano there?"

The line was silent for a few seconds.

"Uh… Why do you ask tea- Arthur?"

Arthur sighed, running a finger across the page he was on. "Well… I just found something… I needed to ask him a question."

There was a moment of a silence as Lovino paused and a ruffling as he shook his head. "No, he's sleeping right now. I'm not going to wake him up either."

He nodded. "I understand." Biting his lip, he continued. "Can I ask you a question about your brother?"

"…I guess… Depends on what it is."

"…Has he been having nightmares? Bad ones, not like they would normally be?" He paused. "Any dizziness, maybe looking like he sees things or weight loss? Time occurrences?"

Lovino answered quickly. "Whoa, slow down. What now? Time occurrences?"

"Yes… Has he been showing any of that?"

"Well um… Yes on the nightmares bit. Very bad and a lot of them. A little dizziness I guess… But that might have been from the sleep deprivation. He… Hasn't been eating as much… What did you mean by time occurrences?"

"Him seeming to slow down at times and go faster in others I suppose…"

He heard Lovino shake his head. "No, none of that. At least, I don't think so… Why are you asking this?"

"…I have a theory. I think I just proved it."

"What's the theory?"

Arthur paused, thinking. "I… can't tell you yet."

"What? Why?! This is my little brother, bastardo! I want to help!"

Arthur had to pull the phone away from his ear. "I know, I know, but I can't yet. I'll tell everyone at the meeting, alright?"

"…fine." The Italian sighed and he heard shifting. "Oh… I have to go Arthur. I'll see you at the meeting."

"Alright. Take care Lovino. Tell Feli hello for me."

"We'll see."

The line clicked. Arthur put his head on the desk, both sides of his brain starting to argue. He didn't know what to do…

A scream hit his ears full force and echoed through the basement. It caused him to jump out of his chair and land on the ground. Across the room he saw Alfred lying on the ground, blood pooling beneath him.

He tried to breathe, but it wouldn't come out. No, no, no. It wasn't real, it couldn't be real. It was just the… the…

Alfred's head moved to look at him, the dull blue eyes piercing his soul. Arthur couldn't take it when he felt his hands become coated in blood, the substance starting to cover his clothes. He ran. And ran. And ran.

Until he collided with something and was sent sprawling on the floor.

"Whoa, ow… What was…? Oh hey Arthur, I was wondering when you were going to-hey, you okay?"

He rubbed his head and stared at Alfred. No, no he was not okay. He just wanted it to stop. For it to be over.

"U-um…"

Matthew walked into the room and stared at the two of them. He sat next to Arthur a moment later. "What's wrong Arthur?"

The Brit tried to catch his breath. He pulled his knees to his chest and pressed his hands to his forehead, as if it would block everything out. "…Everything."

Alfred's eyebrows furrowed. "Everything?"

"Yes! Blo-" No, not blood, never blood. "E-everything…" He felt tears sting his eyes.

"What's everything?" Matthew asked.

Arthur looked at them, tried to see, and when he looked into their eyes, he knew he couldn't tell them. Not about the spell, or the sickness, or what he was now planning to do. He had to keep it locked; At least until the meeting. He had to save everyone from this.

They could not do it again, whether it was in their minds or in that mansion.

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**AN: Yay, I finally got to show some of the plot/idea i had for the story. Thanks for reading!**

**P.S. If you have any ideas for how a nation might react or deal with being back, they're welcome.**


	9. Francis

**AN: Here's the new chapter everyone. It's France's turn.**

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Francis sighed as he filled a glass of wine, staring at the liquid with little interest, trying to calm his jittery nerves. They had just gotten back not… What was it now? How long had it been? He thought this with odd curiosity, not really paying attention to the days as of late.

The only thing he knew was that a meeting was in a few days, thanks to Ludwig and his all-encompassing texts. He carefully set the bottle down, wanting to avoid the mishap he had had earlier in the week. He still couldn't get the stain out…

Quietly, he grabbed the glass and walked to the living room, not failing to notice his shaking fingers. The room was spacious, but not overly so. The carpet was a white color, more of a mix between it and tan. His couch was a deep red color, which he regretted getting now. Looking at it made a sick feeling start to seep from his stomach… Too many times he had seen blood stain the furniture…

Shaking the thoughts away, he sat down and watched the moon out his window. It was full tonight, the glow shining through the entire sky and into his home. The light made him feel a bit better, though it did cast eerie shadows in corners of the room.

Glancing at one, he quickly looked away, shutting his eyes. No, it wasn't a monster… just his imagination… that was all.

He checked again and this time merely saw an ordinary shadow. Slowly, he released the breath he had been holding. It had just been his imagination. Good…

He took a drink, but then stopped, seeing what color it was. Why did it have to be red? He felt his stomach flip and set the glass down slowly.

He couldn't even drink his own wine anymore. This was getting ridiculous. Oh well…

Turning back to the window, he started wondering. How were the other nations doing? Not well he would imagine but… Hopefully better than he was, though he doubted it. Feliciano would be taking this the hardest and then… it was a contest from there, one that none of them wanted to win. His best guess would be Arthur.

The Briton had gone back in time on several occasions, but he was probably the only one that knew exactly how many. And he figured that doing that would only make it worse, not to mention the aftereffects.

The Frenchman shook his head, glancing at the phone. Maybe he should call… but… it was fairly late. He furrowed his eyebrows. Come to think of it, what time was it?

He looked behind him and had to repress the urge to shudder when he saw his clock. There was no reason for it, just… ugh…

It was half past one in the morning. How was it that late already?

He sat up and rested his hands on his knees, unsure. He probably should be getting to bed…

A sharp ringing filled the air and he nearly fell of the couch. The Frenchman let out a deep breath and tried to calm his nerves. "Just a phone Francis…" Slowly, he grabbed the phone and answered. "Hello?"

The voice on the other end was shaky, not to mention familiar. "H-hello."

"…Arthur?"

He heard a shift on the other line, telling him that the brit had nodded.

"What's wrong mon ami?"

There were a few moments of silence. When Arthur spoke again he heard the brit that defended his food and tended to argue with him on everything, not the one that had greeted him. "Just… never mind." He hung up.

As the tone rang, he looked at the phone with mild curiosity. What had the Englishman wanted and what had shaken him up?

It could have been a number of things; hallucinations, nightmares, seeing past time loops randomly… judging by the time of night it seemed like nightmares were the most probable.

He spent a few minutes debating on what the nightmares could have been about. It was namely a number of them dying, but… what else was new. He was sure most, if not all, of them were seeing that now.

He shook his head, stifling a yawn. He really did need to go bed. Slowly getting up, he set the wine glass in the sink and went to his room. After firmly locking the door the Frenchman pulled the covers up and tried to sleep.

Whenever he closed his eyes, especially for long periods of time, time loops he had buried away or had not yet remembered came to the front of his mind, scenarios would play out of what would happen to his fellow countries, namely the monsters somehow finding them and killing them outside of the mansion, or in some cases a monster dragging him back to that place. With every noise he heard, every creek or thump, they got worse.

For lack of better words, his brain would not shut up.

It was the reason he had gotten little to no sleep since they had all met at Kiku's house. He couldn't help but think maybe they would let up a bit tonight… maybe he could be rid of the memories for at least an hour…

But no.

Throughout the night, his brain remained going, like a clock that wouldn't stop ticking. When he was almost asleep, something fell. He wasn't sure what it was, but he had shot up, looked around frantically, and found nothing. But after that there was no stopping them-

_He shot up and looked around. A monster came from the darkness, its teeth glinting, and grabbed his foot, moving to drag him out of the room. He tried to grab something, anything, to escape its grasp, but nothing was lying on the floor. He had moved it earlier._

_He had no way of communicating with anyone; they wouldn't know where he was, if he was dead or alive. They might guess and then they would come. And have to live it all over again._

His mind sped up.

_The mansion came into view. His eyes widened and he tried to grab on to the gravel, ignoring his bleeding fingers. He couldn't go back there, ever again._

_The monster looked back and its eyes glinted, seeming almost amused at his attempts. It pulled harder and he watched as the fence came past him and felt the effects of the clocks. He was human again. _

_His legs dropped and clacked on the ground. Looking up, he froze. _

_Bodies lay strewn across the grass and the pathway. Blood seeped into the dirt. All of the nations… were dead. _

Francis blinked, looking around his room. Seeing no monsters, he remembered to breathe. After a few short breaths he stuffed his face into his pillow. He needed sleep.

The Frenchman plopped on his couch, tiredly turning on his tv. He watched with no interest, eyes staring at nothing. There had been no sleep again. What was it? The… fourth night? fifth? Sixth?

He wished he was human so after a week or two, at least, he would pass out from sheer exhaustion. Being a nation meant he could last longer…

He glanced at the clock. Just after eight in the morning.

The phone rang. He jumped, heart speeding up and feeling pure panic echo through his body. He glanced at the device, took a few deep breaths, and then picked it up. "Hello?"

"Hello Francis."

Arthur again? That was… his mind sluggishly tried to decipher why it felt odd to him. He couldn't think of a reason so he just answered. "Hello Arthur." He had to fight a yawn for the tenth time that morning.

"Yes um… I wanted to apologize for calling so late. I probably woke you."

Not thinking, he snorted. When Arthur spoke again he could hear the aggravation.

"What? Laughing because I said sorry?" He huffed. "Last time I apologize to you, git…"

He blinked, realizing his mistake. "No, mon ami, it wasn't that. I just…"

"You what?"

Francis was silent.

"What, Francis?" He sounded a little concerned now. Oh no, time to change the subject.

"Nothing. How are you doing?"

There was a moment of silence as Arthur debated on answering the question. "…how do you think?"

He sighed. "Not well."

"Yes, that is correct. No one is."

He nodded. Everyone knew that. "But I asked how you are doing Arthur. Not everyone else."

This caused his friend to lapse into silence. When he didn't answer, he figured he would ask again later and followed up with a different question.

"How are the boys?"

It was the Brits turn to sigh. "Not well in the slightest. Both have nightmares. I think Matthew is hearing things…"

He brought the phone down for a moment. "Oh mon petit…" this was not what he wanted to hear. They were looking out for each other though, hopefully. He brought the phone back up, asking "Are the nightmares getting any better?"

"Not really. I think they've lightened slightly for Alfred…"

He nodded. "That's good."

"Yes…" He trailed off and the Frenchman asked again,

"How are you doing Arthur?"

This time, he answered. "I… I've been… not well."

Francis smiled a little. "What kind of not well are we talking about here?" He knew the tone of his voice irritated Arthur, but it was his job when to do this as the big brother.

"…I've been…seeing things…"

He blinked, not expecting the answer or the tone used with it. "What things…?"

"Um… bodies…mostly. Some monsters… Everyone…"

It broke his heart to hear this. "What do they do?"

"…nothing…"

"Arthur."

"…Scream."

He sighed. "Do Mathieu or Alfred know about this?"

"No."

"They should."

He heard the phone shift. "What? They already have enough-"

"Arthur what was the one thing we learned in that place?"

"…what do you mean?"

He smiled softly, ready to remind him of the lesson. "What did we learn not to do?"

There was a moment of silence as the brit thought. When he finally got it, he sighed. "Hide things…"

He nodded. "Yes."

Slowly, his mind shifted back to their time in the hellhole, remembering when Feliciano had tried to hide everything from them. He felt horrible about how they had not believed him in the earlier loops and that the Italian had had to put on such a scheme to not be… well, he still was laughed at sometimes. They still died so many times and he still tried to help them.

He had to admire him for that…

Arthur coughed into the phone. At the sudden noise, his eyes widened and he jumped. "Mon dieu!"

"How are you Francis?" Arthur almost sounded a little smug asking, but that faded as quickly as it came.

He had to explain after making Arthur. "I can't sleep."

"Is it nightmares or-"

"No, I _can't _sleep. My mind won't stop."

He seemed to understand the meaning of the explanation. "Oh…" The brit took a deep breathe. "I'm working on finding a solution."

The Frenchman's eyebrows narrowed. "What solution?"

"Don't worry about it Francis… I'll talk to you later. Try and get some sleep." He hung up before another word could be said.

Francis brought the phone down and stared at it for a few moments. He frowned, and then yawned. He didn't have a good feeling about this. Arthur was going to do something stupid.

After debating on calling the Englishman back several times, Francis just decided to watch something on television. He could just call Arthur tomorrow or the next day or… whenever the meeting was. He thought Ludwig had said two or three days but… he wasn't sure.

He flipped through the channels. Oh well… he was sure he would get another text or call sooner or later about it. "Hmm…" He picked a random channel and tried to watch. It didn't go well, seeing as he couldn't pay attention to really anything at this point. The words kept flying over his head.

He sighed. Maybe he should go for a drive… but then he would probably fall asleep in the car… The Frenchman's eyebrows furrowed. That could actually work…

The rational part of his mind started showing itself. He would crash if he did that, hurt himself or someone else. Maybe he could get someone else to drive him…? No… that was stupid. Why would someone else agree to drive him?

High ringing filled his ears. He jumped; gripping the couch like it was his lifeline. His heart kept pounding. god he had to stop doing that…

He quickly grabbed the phone and answered. "Hello?"

"Hola Francis."

He blinked a few times. "Antonio?"

The Spaniard laughed. "Si, mi amigo. How are you doing?"

"Um…" He tried to find the words to describe it and finally settled on, "Tired."

"Not sleeping?"

"Non… not at all."

"Nightmares?"

"Non. I'm just not sleeping."

"Oh…" his friend paused.

Francis's eyebrows furrowed. "Why did you call?"

"To see how you were doing. I'm calling everyone."

"Oh. How is gilbert?"

"Um… pretty shaken. He's still trying to get his bearings. I think he's seeing shadows the wrong way if you know what I mean."

He nodded. "He's not the only one."

"Yeah, I know… hey, Francis?"

"Oui?"

"I have some music I could play."

He tried to wrap his head around the sentence. "Hmm?"

Antonio laughed a little. "You must not have slept in a long time. I have a guitar amigo, remember?"

"I remember… and?"

"I know it's the middle of the day, but I could play something to help you sleep."

He paused, understanding. "Oh…"

"I just… I'm trying to help out however I can. I don't have all the memories you all do so… I figure that it's the best thing I can do."

Francis nodded slowly. "I suppose you could… thanks."

"No problem." There was shuffling on the other end and then he heard soft music fill the speakers. He put it on speaker phone and decided that he didn't really want to get up and walk to his room. He could just lie on the couch. As he did, he listened more to the notes being played.

They were slow and some had been spaced out purposely. It was beautiful but… he couldn't help but get a sad feeling from it. "Did you write this?"

"Yes, after we got back."

"Hmm…" He closed his eyes and noticed his thoughts didn't go off. He just listened and soon found himself asleep.

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**AN: Sorry if I didn't get Francis's character all that well. I haven't written in his perspective much. Thanks for reading though! Review if you'd like.**


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